2) You can save money by going to the grocery store instead of eating out every meal-
If you get a per diem through work, you can pocket that money. I was able to save up to buy myself new work clothes with the money I saved. For example, if you eat at Wendy's and get a grilled chicken sandwich and a large drink it is about $7 (my go to if I need to get fast food). OR you could go to the grocery and buy a tuna packet, a banana, and a cucumber for around $3.

3) Don't make excuses-
It is so easy to make excuses while traveling. I will be 100% honest, it is harder to eat healthy and stay fit while traveling, but it is also 100% possible to continue your healthy lifestyle. During my full 2 months of travel, I only ate out 3 times. Once was Wendy's grilled chicken sandwich, another was tacos in downtown Chicago with my co-worker, and brunch egg burritos with another college representative that became a good friend on the road. Those were the only times I ate out. It could have been so easy to say, "Oh I got to my hotel late, I don't feel like going to the grocery. Maybe I will go tomorrow." Excuses! Same goes for working out. There were days when I worked 10-12 hours, but still found time to get at least a 30 minute workout in at my hotel. If it is important to you, you will make time for it!

4) Get creative with your workouts-
I always travel with my resistance bands because you never know if there will be enough equipment in hotel gyms OR if the hotel will even have a gym. For the most part, most hotels now-a-days have hotel gyms. Resistance bands can enhance a workout in so many ways and you can use them with little space. Some of my favorite moves while using the bands- hip thrusts, sitting hip abductions, side lying abductions, donkey kickbacks, fire hydrants, band pull apart, bicep curls, tricep kickbacks, etc.

5) Ask the front desk if they can bring up a fridge/microwave if there isn't one-

simply go to the front desk and ask the front desk if they have any in the back that they can bring up to your room... I did this 4 separate times during my travel season. The worst they can say is no.

6) Lastly, don't stress-
If you don't maintain your fitness or nutrition goals for a day, simply move on with them the next day. I feel like when people dwell on the negative, the negative cycle continues. Notice the negatives, notice how your body feels when you don't exercise or eat healthy, then get right back on track!

Now I had about a 6 hour trip between getting my car for travel and then actually traveling to Chicago, so it was necessary to pack lots of snacks that were easy to eat while driving. Here's what I had:

Nuzest strawberry protein shake made with almond milk

1/2 Nuzest Green bar

1 Health Warrior Vanilla Almond Chia Seed bar

1 cucumber

apple

a few potato slices

Meal Diary

*I planned my macros around the food I bought for the week, therefore my meals for the whole week will be very similar*

Sunday, September 10, 2017

I have been MIA recently, but I wanted to start a travel series on my blog. First, let me give a little history...

I am an Assistant Director of Admissions at a public university. Part of my responsibility is to travel to Chicago and Milwaukee to attend high school visits and college fairs. I recruit students to attend our university. This means I will basically be living out of a hotel for two months. If any of you know me personally, you know I will always find a way to eat healthy and workout. For this reason, I wanted to share my tips and tricks for staying healthy on the road. I will be blogging about my experience every week, so let's start this journey.

In total, I probably spent $30-$35 on groceries and supplies for the week. This means I am actually saving money by not eating out all of the time. One nice thing is that many hotels have a fitness area, free breakfast, fridge, and microwave so take advantage of those things. Sometimes you have to get creative, but it is possible to stick to your health goals while living out of a hotel.

Take advantage of the free breakfast if your hotel provides it.

Here is what I had for breakfast one morning:

1 serving of oatmeal

1 pkg of peanut butter (about 2 T.)

2 hard boiled eggs

coffee with my own almond milk

a bite of a doughnut

Snack 1:

banana

small box of Special K cereal

*I took each of these from the free breakfast at the hotel*

For lunch:

4 oz of chicken

1 serving of brown rice

Snack 2 (pre-workout):

1 oz. of beef jerky

1-2 T hummus

10-15 carrots

2 Apple Pie Oreos

5-10 almonds

Dinner:

4 oz of chicken

1 serving of celery

1 serving of carrots

1-2 T of hummus

2 pieces of dark chocolate

How to cook your chicken in a rice cooker:

I put all of my uncooked chicken in my rice cooker with a little water and seasoning. I choose the slow cooker setting and then close the lid and let everything cook! That's it! It's super simple and easy.

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Other tips and tricks from this week:

1) always take extra food from the free breakfast at the hotel as a snack for later in the day.

2) always take snacks with you if you are not going to be at the hotel during the day

3) majority of hotels have an ice maker in the hallway

4) if your room doesn't have a fridge or microwave, ask the front desk for them

5) You can make hot water in the coffee maker and use it to make oatmeal

6) get creative in the gym- this gym only had a cable machine and cardio equipment

7) bring a book or two to read- I am reading a new book about bodyweight strength training

Now I am on to week 2 of travel. I am hoping to get some pictures this week!